Collecting a user response to an explicit question specifically concerning a particular web page of a website

ABSTRACT

In one embodiment, a system is provided for collecting a user response to an explicit question specifically concerning a particular web page of a website. An icon viewable on the particular web page the explicit question specifically concerns is operable to present the explicit question specifically concerning the particular web page to each user that accesses the particular web page while the user is viewing the particular web page and without requiring the user to access any web page other than the particular web page. Software associated with the icon viewable on the particular web page the explicit question specifically concerns is operable to receive a response to the explicit question specifically concerning the particular web page from the user while the user is viewing the particular web page for reporting to a website owner associated with the particular web page without requiring the user to access any web page other than the particular web page.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.09/595,141 filed Jun. 14, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,606,581 which is acontinuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/385,256 filed Aug.30, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. US6,421,724B1.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates in general to communications and moreparticularly to collecting a user response to an explicit questionspecifically concerning a particular web page of a website.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Many website owners desire information concerning usage of theirwebsites. For example, an Internet website owner might use a third partyservice to track the number of users that visit its website, the numberof “clicks” these users collectively perform (using their mousepointers) while visiting the website, and how long these users stay atthe website. Using this objective information, the website owner maydetermine that its website is not attracting a sufficient number ofusers or has been ineffective at keeping the interest of users once theyarrive. The website owner may react accordingly to improve its websitesand, possibly, the success of its associated business operations.

Previous techniques for obtaining information concerning usage ofwebsites often do not provide website owners with information about howusers subjectively react to their websites, making the information ofminimal value. Prior techniques that do solicit subjective userreactions do so with respect to transactions carried out using thewebsite, but not with respect to the website itself. These techniquesgive website owners little if any information concerning subjectivereactions of users to particular pages of their websites. Moreover,website owners are given little if any information about how usersexperience their websites as the users navigate through them, movingfrom page to page according to the topography of the websites. Eventechniques that request users to provide subjective reactions concerningtransactions may be relatively difficult to use, obtrusive,unstandardized, or otherwise deficient in some manner that causes themto be seldom used and therefore ineffective. The information reported towebsite owners may also be ineffective due to the format in which it isprovided, for example, in reports that are difficult to interpret and donot allow useful comparisons to be made. These and other disadvantagesmake prior techniques inadequate for many website owners.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention, problems and disadvantagesassociated with previous techniques for receiving user feedbackconcerning websites may be reduced or eliminated.

In one embodiment, a system is provided for collecting a user responseto an explicit question specifically concerning a particular web page ofa website. The system includes an icon viewable on the particular webpage the explicit question specifically concerns, the icon operable topresent the explicit question specifically concerning the particular webpage to each user that accesses the particular web page the explicitquestion specifically concerns while the user is viewing the particularweb page the explicit question specifically concerns and withoutrequiring the user to access any web page other than the particular webpage the explicit question specifically concerns. The system alsoincludes software associated with the icon viewable on the particularweb page the explicit question specifically concerns, the softwareoperable to receive a response to the explicit question specificallyconcerning the particular web page from the user while the user isviewing the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns for reporting to a website owner associated with the particularweb page the explicit question specifically concerns without requiringthe user to access any web page other than the particular web page theexplicit question specifically concerns.

Particular embodiments of the present invention may provide one or moretechnical advantages. Certain embodiments measure subjective userreactions to particular pages of websites using measurement softwarethat is readily identifiable (according to the associated icon), easy touse, and unobtrusive. For example, in certain embodiments, the user neednot separately download any software and open a new window on the user'sbrowser. As a result, not only may very valuable information be readilycompiled—subjective reactions to particular pages, along with otherappropriate data that may be correlated to the subjective reactions—butit is likely that many users will actually provide this information sothat it may actually be compiled. This stands in sharp contrast toprevious techniques. In addition, in certain embodiments, the websiteowner may relatively easily incorporate the measurement software intoone or more new or existing pages of the website, rather than assumingthe cost and delay often associated with rewriting software code ofthese pages. In certain embodiments, the reports provided to the websiteowner, in addition to containing a wealth of previously unavailableinformation concerning the particular pages of the website, may bereadily interpreted and allow useful comparisons to be made betweenthese particular pages. Moreover, in certain embodiments, the presentinvention may allow a website owner to access reports concerning thesubjective user reactions in much the same way a user might navigatefrom one page to another within a website, according to the topographyof the website. This may give the website owner additional valuableinformation upon which to base decisions concerning website.

These and other advantages may make the system and method of the presentinvention well suited for used in modern Internet and other environmentsin which users access websites. These and other advantages may alsocontribute to the measurement software (and associated icon) becoming astandard across the entire community of Internet users. Other technicaladvantages may be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from thefigures, description, and claims included herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an example system for measuring and reporting userreactions to particular web pages of a website;

FIG. 2 illustrates an example web page incorporating a user reactionmeasurement tool;

FIG. 3 illustrates an example web page incorporating a general reactionmeasurement tool;

FIG. 4 illustrates another example general reaction measurement tool;

FIG. 5 illustrates an example web page incorporating a specific reactionmeasurement tool;

FIG. 6 illustrates an example combined general reaction measurement tooland specific reaction measurement tool;

FIG. 7 illustrates an example web page for registering a user;

FIGS. 8A and 8B illustrate example site level reports;

FIG. 9 illustrates an example page level report;

FIG. 10 illustrates an example method of incorporating a user reactionmeasurement tool into particular web pages of a website;

FIG. 11 illustrates an example method of measuring a user's reactions toparticular web pages of a website; and

FIG. 12 illustrates an example method of reporting on user reactions toparticular web pages of a website.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 illustrates an example system 10 for measuring and reporting onuser reactions to particular web pages associated with a website usingone or more reaction measurement tools that are incorporated in andviewable on the pages. As described more fully below, in one embodiment,the reaction measurement tools are standardized across some or all ofthe web pages, are readily identifiable by users of the pages, and areintuitive, predictable, and easy for the users to use in providing theirreactions to the pages. As a result, these measurement tools provide anumber of important technical advantages over previous techniques formeasuring user input, which may merely measure and report objectivewebsite usage information or user reactions concerning transactionsrather subjective user reactions on a page by page basis. Such systemsare therefore incapable of providing meaningful feedback to websiteowners as to the “topography” of their websites; that is, which ofpossibly numerous pages of a website have been rated particularlysuccessful or unsuccessful in the eyes of users of the website as thoseusers navigate through the pages of the website according theirparticular needs. The system and method of the present invention addressthese and other deficiencies.

Although the present invention is described primarily in connection withthe measurement and reporting of subjective user reactions to one ormore particular pages of one or more websites, the present invention maybe similarly applied in connection with polling, surveying, productdevelopment research, market research, usability testing,business-to-consumer (B2C) commercial transactions, business-to-business(B2B) commercial transactions, or any other suitable activity for whichthe measurement and reporting of user responses may be desirable. Thoseskilled in the art will readily appreciate the application of thepresent invention to such activities based on these figures,descriptions, and claims.

System 10 includes a website owner 12, a web server 14, one or morewebsite users 16, and a reporting server 18 coupled to one another usingnetwork 20, which may be any suitable local area network (LAN),metropolitan area network (MAN), wide area network (WAN), a globalcommunications network such as the Internet, or any other suitablenetwork. Although owner 12, server 14, users 16, and server 18 aredescribed as coupled using a single network 20, the present inventioncontemplates multiple networks 12 of the same type or different types tocouple these components to one another, according to particular needs.Owner 12 and users 16 may each be autonomous computer systems or mayreceive appropriate input from one or more associated persons. Servers14 and 18 may including software operating on one or more computersystems 22 and 24, respectively, at one or more locations. Owner 12,server 14, and server 18 may operate on at least one shared computersystem. The computer systems associated with owner 12, user 16, server14, and server 18 include input devices, output devices, processors,memories, and other components suitable for the features and operationdescribed below.

Web server 14 hosts or otherwise supports at least one website 26including one or more pages 28. Although pages 28 are describedprimarily as web pages 28 associated with a typical website 26, thepresent invention contemplates measuring and reporting user reactions tofiles, documents, or any other formatted information. Moreover, althougha single website 26 for a single owner 12 is described in detail, server14 may support one or more websites 26 for each of multiple owners 12.In general, using an associated web browser or other software component,the user 16 provides a uniform resource locator (URL) or otherelectronic address to establish a connection to server 14 and access aparticular page 28 associated with website 26. Server 14 communicatesthe requested page 28 to user 16 using network 20, user 16 receives page28, and the user 16 views or otherwise processes page 28 according tothe user's particular needs. User 16 will typically provide one or moreadditional URLs during a single browser session to access additionalpages 28 associated with website 26, navigating through the topographyof website 26 according to particular needs. Multiple users 16 mayaccess a single page 28 substantially simultaneously. The presentinvention contemplates one or more website users 16 accessing one ormore pages 28 of website 26 in any suitable manner during one or morebrowser sessions.

Each user 16 may have an opinion, assessment, feeling, or othersubjective reaction to each page 28 communicated to the user 16, eitherin its entirety or more specifically to the format, content, design, oranother characteristic associated with page 28. For example only and notby way of limitation, user 16 may consider a particular page 28 helpful,informative, understandable, humorous, or may otherwise have a positiveor favorable reaction to page 28, generally or with respect to one ormore specific aspects of page 28. Alternatively, for example and withoutlimitation, user 16 may consider a particular page unhelpful,uninformative, confusing, boring, or may otherwise have a negative orunfavorable reaction to page 28, generally or with respect to one ormore specific aspects of page 28. The strength of this subjectivereaction, whether positive or negative, may vary from mild to verystrong. Rather than having a positive or negative reaction, user 16 mayhave a neutral reaction to page 28. Moreover, the subjective reaction ofuser 16 to page 28, generally or as to specific aspects, may bedifferent from the subjective reaction of user 16 to other pages 28 orto website 26 in its entirety. Where appropriate, the phrase “reactionto page 28” is meant to include responses to one or more explicitquestions concerning page 28, concerning one or more visual, audible, orother elements of page 28, or concerning one or more items with whichpage 28 is logically associated. Even more broadly, where appropriate,the phrase “reaction to page 28” may include responses to any explicitquestion, whether or not the subject of the question is related in somemanner to page 28.

According to the present invention, the reactions of users 16 to one ormore particular pages 28 of website 26 are measured and compiled toallow system 10 to provide valuable information to owner 12 concerningthe topography of website 26; that is, particular pages 28 and specificaspects of those particular pages 28 that have been successful orunsuccessful in the eyes of users 16 as users 16 navigate through pages28 of the website 26. In one embodiment, server 14 supports a userreaction measurement tool 30 that is incorporated into pages 28 and maybe communicated to user 16 with page 28 in response to user 16requesting page 28.

As described below with reference to FIGS. 2 through 6, the tool 30 ispreferably incorporated in page 28, both as a viewable icon and assuitable software components, in a manner that does not conflict withthe existing design or coding of page 28. In a particular embodiment,tool 30 includes software code incorporated into the Hypertext MarkupLanguage (HTML), Extensible Markup Language (XML), or other softwarecode of page 28. Tool 30 also includes one or more JAVASCRIPTS, or othersuitable scripts, that may be stored in a dedicated or other suitabledirectory. In the particular embodiment, the software code incorporatedinto page 28 calls the script response to the user 16 selecting an iconassociated with tool 30 to provide a subjective user reaction. Tool 30may be incorporated in one or more pages 28 of website 26, directly orindirectly such as through a call to a script within a dedicateddirectory, in any appropriate manner without departing from the intendedscope of the present invention. In response to user 16 accessing theassociated page 28, the incorporated software code and the directorycontaining the script are communicated with page 28 to user 16. Unlessotherwise specified or appropriate, a reference to tool 30 is meant toinclude reference to the viewable icon, the script and its directory,the call to the script incorporated in the code of page 28, and anyother components of tool 30, singly or in any combination. In oneembodiment, the tool 30 continues to execute on the computer system ofuser 16, with associated page 28, until user 16 provides a user reactionor closes the user's web browser.

As described more fully below with reference to FIGS. 2 through 6, tool30 may include a general reaction measurement tool 32 for measuring theuser's general reaction to the associated page 28, for example only andnot by way of limitation, according to a multi-level or another suitablesubjective rating scale. Also as described more fully below withreference to FIGS. 2 through 6, instead of or in addition to generalreaction measurement tool 32, tool 30 may include a specific reactionmeasurement tool 34 for measuring the user's reaction with respect toone or more selected aspects of page 28, according to the same or adifferent subjective rating scale as for tool 32. For example andwithout limitation, tool 34 may measure the subjective reaction of user16 to the content, design, usability, or any other suitable aspect ofpage 28, singly or in any combination. Reactions measured using tool 30,32, or 34 may include responses to one or more explicit questions posedto user 16 concerning page 28, concerning one or more visual, audible,or other elements of page 28, concerning one or more items with whichpage 28 is logically associated, or concerning any other suitablesubject. As described more fully below, tools 30, 32, and 34 may allow auser 16 to provide comments or access additional information concerningthe rating scale, tool 30, 32, or 34, website 26, owner 12, or any otherappropriate aspect of system 10. Subjective reactions and related inputreceived from users 16 may be stored temporarily on the computer systemof user 16, within tool 30, or at another suitable location before beingcommunicated to server 18 for storage within database 36, which mayinclude one or more data storage locations integral to or separate fromcomputer system 24.

In one embodiment, user reaction measurement tool 30 includesregistration module 38 for collecting appropriate demographic or anyother suitable information associated with user 16. Using suchdemographic information, the reactions of user 16 to pages 28 may becategorized and analyzed to obtain further information that may bevaluable to owner 12 or to others. Not only can demographic informationbe correlated to user reactions, but the linking between demographicinformation and user reactions may be used to determine additionalinformation about the correlation between user reactions and othermetrics. For example, system 10 or another system may collect websitetraffic data, along with demographic information requested from websitevisitors, such that the traffic data may be correlated with thedemographic data. System 10 may collect user reaction data, along withdemographic information requested from users 16, such that the userreaction data may be correlated with the demographic data. Since in thisexample both the website traffic data and the user reaction data arecorrelated with demographic information, the traffic data and userreaction data may be correlated with one another to provide owner 12 orothers with potentially valuable information. It may also be desirableto present the traffic data and user reaction data together in anintegrated fashion, with or without the linking demographic information,using a single “dashboard” or other suitable visual display. Any set oftwo or more metrics may be correlated in an analogous manner, using acommon link to demographic or other suitable compiled information, andpresented together using a single visual display.

As described more fully below with reference to FIG. 7, the registrationmodule 38 may be implemented using a registration page or pop-up windowthat is presented to a user 16 at least the first time the user 16selects tool 30 to provide a subjective user reaction to a page 28associated with website 26. The demographic information received fromusers 16 is communicated to server 18 for storage in database 40, whichmay include one or more data storage locations integral to or separatefrom database 36 and computer system 24. This demographic informationmay be accessible to users 16, with appropriate password protection, toallow the users 16 to add to, delete, or modify some or all of theirassociated demographic information, as appropriate. Alternatively, users16 might communicate appropriate modifications, using e-mail forexample, to a person responsible for implementing such modifications.Although a particular registration procedure is described, user 16 mayregister in any appropriate manner, for example, by facsimile, regularmail, or telephone (possibly using an interactive voice response (IVR)system).

In general, website owner 12 is any entity responsible for at least oneaspect associated with website 26, for example only, financing,creation, editing, approval, review, implementation, administration, orany other suitable aspect associated with website 26. Owner 12 interactswith servers 14 and 18 as appropriate to set up and administer one ormore websites 26 hosted or otherwise supported on server 14, includingincorporating tool 30 into pages 28 and accessing any reportinginformation on user reactions to pages 28. Before allowing owner 12 toincorporate tool 30 and the associated software components into pages28, server 18 may require that owner 12 provide appropriateidentification, billing, and other information; may notify owner 12 thatwebsite 26 may be “crawled” to identify and gather data pertaining topages 28; may provide owner 12 with a license agreement or otherinformation concerning services being provided to owner 12; and maycommunicate any other appropriate information with owner 12. Server 18may store some or all of the registration and setup informationdescribed above in one or more appropriate storage locations (notexplicitly shown) according to particular needs. Server 18 may alsoassign owner 12 an identifier and password for use in accessing reportsconcerning one or more particular pages 28 of website 26, as describedmore fully below. Although server 18 is described as handling theregistration of owner 12, owner 12 may register in any appropriatemanner, such as by facsimile, by regular mail, or by telephone (possiblyusing an interactive voice response (IVR) system).

After appropriate information has been communicated between owner 12 andserver 18 and, if desirable, verified in some appropriate manner, owner12 may use a wizard or other software component to download or otherwisecommunicate one or more pages 28 (or preferably copies of pages 28) ofthe website 26 from server 14 to the computer system of owner 12. Pages28 may be communicated to owner 12 using File Transfer Protocol (FTP) orin any other suitable manner, singly or as a group. Owner 12 mayspecify, for each page 28, the type of viewable icon the owner 12 wantsto appear on page 28, the color of the icon, or any other suitablecharacteristic of the icon. In one embodiment, characteristics of theicon may include one or more explicit questions concerning page 28,concerning one or more visual, audible, or other elements of page 28, orconcerning one or more items with which page 28 is logically associated.Where appropriate, the characteristics of the icon may include anyexplicit question, whether or not the subject of the question is relatedin some manner to page 28.

To specify an icon and its characteristics, as an example only and notby way of limitation, owner 12 might click on the desired icon, whichmight be one of multiple standard icons, and manipulate itscharacteristics using pull down menus. Owner 12 might then click on,drag and drop, or otherwise incorporate the desired icon into the localversion of the page 28. The incorporation might instead occurautomatically in response to owner 12 specifying characteristics of theicon. The wizard may create a dedicated or other suitable directorycontaining the script of tool 30 and, in addition, paste or otherwiseincorporate a call to the script in the software code of the page 28.Owner 12 may use the wizard or another software component to upload orotherwise communicate each modified page 28 (incorporating the tool 30)back to the server 14, singly or as a group, to replace correspondingprevious page 28 (not incorporating tool 30) within website 26. Theprocess through which owner 12 may incorporate tool 30 in one or morepages 28 provides an important technical advantage of the presentinvention. In one embodiment, incorporation of tool 30 in pages 28 freesusers 16 from needing to download separate software (separate fromaccessing page 28) or open a separate window to provide subjectivereactions using tool 30, providing another important technicaladvantage.

Alternatively, server 18 might communicate tool 30 directly to server 14for automatic incorporation into pages 28. Less desirably, server 18might communicate to owner 12 a file containing the software code to beincorporated into the code of pages 28 and also containing the directorywith the script to be called when user 16 selects tool 30 to provide auser reaction. Owner 12 may download from server 14 or otherwise obtaina local version of each page 28, manually edit each of the pages 28 bypasting in the appropriate software components, and then upload orotherwise communicate modified pages 28 (incorporating tool 30) back toserver 14, singly or as a group, to replace previous pages 28 (notincorporating tool 30) within website 26. As another alternative, thetool 30 might be incorporated into page 28 as page 28 is constructed,such as with an entirely new website 26 or when new content is added toan existing website 26.

Although a number of possible alternatives are described in detail, tool30 may be incorporated into pages 28 of website 26 in any suitablemanner without departing from the intended scope of the presentinvention. Moreover, although a web page 28 is primarily described, thepresent invention contemplates tool 30 being incorporated in orotherwise associated with an e-mail message, advertisement, GraphicsInterface Format (GIF) file, or other suitable collection of informationcommunicated to user 16, whether or not considered a web page 28. Anysuch collection of information incorporating tool 30 may be considered apage 28, where appropriate. For example, tool 30 may be incorporatedinto an attachment to an e-mail message communicated to user 16 andsoliciting one or more subjective reactions to the content, delivery, orother aspect of the e-mail. Upon receiving the e-mail message, user 16might open the attachment, click on or otherwise select the icon toprovide one or more requested user reactions, and thereby cause userreaction information to be communicated to server 18 for collection andreporting.

As still another possible alternative within the scope of the presentinvention, tool 30 may be embedded or otherwise incorporated into theuser's web browser rather than pages 28 to provide substantiallyequivalent functionality. In one embodiment, user 16 may download tool30, either as part of accessing a page 28 or directly, and perform anyappropriate subsequent operations to incorporate tool 30 into the webbrowser. Tool 30 may be installed each time user 16 accesses a page 28or may be installed the first time user 16 accesses a page 18 and remaininstalled until user 16 desires to uninstall the tool 30. If the tool 30is incorporated into the web browser rather than page 28, the viewableicon associated with tool 30 may appear in the “masthead” area of thebrowser window, may appear so as to obscure some or all of page 28within the browser window, or may appear in any other suitable locationand in any other suitable manner, according to particular needs.

Periodically or in response to receiving reaction information from auser 16 concerning one or more particular pages 28 of website 26,collection module 42 of server 18 may perform a “crawl” to identify thepages 28 that are associated with website 26 (and possibly otherwebsites 26) and incorporate tool 30. Based on this information, thecollection module 42 may generate a map or other suitable reportconcerning the topography of website 26 and store the map in a database44, which may include one or more storage locations integral to orseparate from database 36, database 40, and server 18. In oneembodiment, the pages 28 are parsed to identify their titles, URLs, andother suitable information for use in generating the map. Reportingmodule 46 uses the map to generate reports concerning the pages 28 ofwebsite 26, which might be linked to one another according to thetopography of website 26 as described more fully below with reference toFIG. 9. Owner 12 may subsequently modify one or more pages 28 of website26 according to the subjective ratings or other user reactions receivedfrom users 16 (and possibly their demographic profiles), as reflected inthe reports, to improve the pages 28 or better tailor the pages 28 forparticular categories of users 16.

In some cases, owner 12 may be an organization and different personswithin the organization might be responsible for different sets of oneor more pages 28 of website 26. This may be an especially likelyscenario when the owner 12 is a large company and website 26 includes alarge number of pages 28. In one embodiment, when owner 12 isregistering with server 18, owner 12 is requested to provide the e-mailaddress or other contact information for each such person, to identifypages 28 for which the person is responsible, and specify contactcriteria. The information may be stored in a storage location (notexplicitly shown) at or otherwise accessible to server 18. The contactcriteria may apply to all the pages 28 for which the person isresponsible or for one or more selected pages 28. For example, thecontact criteria might specify that if a page 28 receives five negativeratings within a specified time period, the person associated with thatpage 28 will be automatically informed using the stored e-mail address.Moreover, if a user 16 provides comments using the icon associated witha page 28, the comments may be automatically communicated to the personassociated with that page, as the comments are received or periodicallyas a group. The present invention contemplates any suitable threshold orother contact criteria, according to particular needs.

In the operation of system 10, owner 12 interacts with servers 14 and 18as appropriate to register the owner 12 and download or otherwiseincorporate tool 30 into one or more pages 28 of website 26. The user 16accesses a particular page 28 incorporating tool 30 during a browsersession and uses tool 30 to provide one or more general or specificreactions to page 28. In one embodiment, if user 16 has not previouslyaccessed any page 28 incorporating tool 30 during the browser session,tool 30 may determine an Internet Protocol (IP) or other electronicaddress for the computer system associated with user 16 and, whentechnically feasible, determine a hostname for the computer system. Thispreferably allows each user reaction to be associated with a particularcomputer system coupled to network 20. Tool 30 may attempt to store acookie, token, or other appropriate message including a browser sessionidentifier on the user's computer system, using the user's web browseror in any other manner. Each time user 16 accesses another page 28incorporating tool 30 during the browser session, tool 30 may accessthis stored message and respond accordingly.

In response to user 16 providing a general or specific subjectivereaction to page 28, tool 30 may also attempt to store on the user'scomputer system a cookie, token, or other message that includes areaction user identifier, which tool 30 may access as appropriate duringthe remainder of the browser session. The tool 30 may store the reactionuser identifier on the user's computer system, possibly along with thetime and date at which user 16 provided the reaction. After user 16provides a subjective reaction to the page 28, tool 30 may cause apreviously viewable icon associated with tool 30 to become unviewable onpage 28 for the remainder of the browser session (if user 16 returns tothe page 28), for as long as user 16 remains on page 28, for a specifiedtime period, or otherwise. As a result, user 16 may be given noopportunity to provide multiple reactions to the same page 28, forexample, during the same browser session or during the specified timeperiod, which may make the reported results more meaningful.

For example, if tool 30 causes the icon to become unviewable on a firstpage for which user 16 provided a user reaction, user 16 accesses asecond page 28, and user 16 later returns to first page 28 during thesame browser session, then tool 30 may recognize this based on thestored message including the reaction user identifier and prevent theicon from appearing on first page 28 for this and any other subsequentaccesses of first page 28 during the browser session. Alternatively,tool 30 might allow the associated icon to remain viewable and mightreceive subsequent reactions to first page 28, but might simply ignoresuch subsequent reactions. Of course, tool 30 may simply receive fromuser 16 and process all the user reactions to a particular page 28,whether or not multiple reactions are received from user 16 for theparticular page 28 during the same browser session or during a specifiedtime period. In one embodiment, the cookies, tokens, or other messagesthat tool 30 stores on the user's computer system, including at leastthe browser session identifier and reaction user identifier, may expirewhen user 16 closes the user's web browser.

In one embodiment, user 16 is asked to provide demographic informationthe first time the user 16 provides a reaction to a page 28 associatedwith a website 26 supported on server 14 and incorporating tool 30. Ifuser 16 provides the requested demographic information, tool 30 andserver 14 communicate the information to the server 18 for storage indatabase 40. Tool 30 may also assign a demographic user identifier andstore it on the user's computer system in the form of a cookie, token,or other suitable message. In one embodiment, this allow reports to begenerated that reflect the demographic information, correlating it touser reaction information, and give owner 12 further valuableinformation regarding pages 28 of website 26. The demographic useridentifier is preferably the same as the reaction user identifier toallow the reaction information and demographic information to be readilyassociated with one another. As discussed above, demographic informationlinked to reaction information may be used correlate the reactioninformation with one or more other metrics that are similarly linked todemographic information.

If user 16 previously provided demographic information and accepted theassociated cookie, token, or other message with the demographic useridentifier, tool 30 determines this each time user 16 accesses anotherpage 28 of website 26, during the same or a different browser session.Ideally, user 16 is requested to and does provide the demographicinformation the first time user 16 accesses a page 28 that incorporatestool 30. However, if user 16 elects not to provide some or all requesteddemographic information, tool 30 may again invite user 16 to providedemographic information in response to user 16 selecting tool 30 toprovide a subsequent reaction to the same or a different page 28. Tool30 might stop requesting the demographic information, at least for aspecified period, after a specified number of refusals so as not tounduly alienate the user 16 or deter user 16 from providing reactions topages 28 or from even accessing pages 28.

User identifiers for user 16 may also be used for a variety of othersuitable purposes. For example, according to a user identifier stored asa cookie, token, or other message on the user's computer system, tool 30may cause a particular question to be presented to user 16 in responseto user 16 providing a user reaction. As a more particular example,every tenth time the user 16 selects tool 30 to provide a user reactionto an associated page 28, tool 30 might cause a question to appearinviting user 16 to indicate (in addition to providing the userreaction) whether user 16 is a customer of website 26 or its owner 12.User 16 might be given an opportunity to provide comments in addition toanswering “Yes” or “No.” Such questions could be presented in responseto the user 16 actually providing a user reaction using tool 30, insteadof merely selecting tool 30.

In response to user 16 providing a general or specific reaction to apage 28, tool 30 stores the reaction temporarily in memory on thecomputer system associated with user 16 before instructing the computersystem to communicate the reaction to server 18. Tool 30 may alsocollect the time and date at which user 16 provided the reaction. Tool30, using the user's computer system, may communicate user reactioninformation for page 28 to server 18 before or after user 16 leaves page28. In one embodiment, the reaction information may include the title,URL, start time and date, reaction time and date, user reaction, andreaction user identifier, in any combination and without limitation.Reaction information may additionally include “web profile” informationfor the user 16, such as the IP address, hostname, username, password,network connection, operating system, web browser, screen resolution,plug-ins, or any other appropriate aspects of the user's environment.Tool 30 may compute the time user 16 spent on page 28 before providing areaction or may leave this task for server 18 to perform.

Server 18 receives and accepts the reaction information. This mayinclude determining the title, URL, user reaction, and reaction useridentifier; computing the time user 16 spent on the page 28 beforeproviding the reaction; and other appropriate operations. In oneembodiment, server 18 attempts to match the received reaction useridentifier with a stored demographic user identifier and, according tothe match, associate the demographic information with the reactioninformation. The server 18 stores some or all of the reactioninformation, preferably in association with the demographic information,in database 36 for use in generating reports accessible to owner 12.Server 18 may communicate a message to user 16, through the user's webbrowser or otherwise, to inform user 16 that the reaction wassuccessfully received. As multiple users 16 provide their subjectivereactions to pages 28 as they navigate through website 26 according toits topography, a wealth of information concerning pages 28 may beassembled and later provided to owner 12 for use in improving particularpages 28 and thus website 26 as a whole. To access one or more reportsreflecting this information, the owner 12 communicates report requeststo server 18 and, in response, receives the requested reports.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example web page 28 incorporating user reactionmeasurement tool 30. In one embodiment, as described above, tool 30provides a mechanism for measuring subjective user reactions to page 28that is standardized across some or preferably all pages 28 of website26, is readily identifiable by users 16, and is intuitive, predictable,and thus easy for these users 16 to use in providing their subjectivereactions to pages 28. In a more particular embodiment, the tool 30appears to users 16 as a language-independent icon 50, viewable on page28 within the user's browser window, that periodically or continuouslyspins, flips, switches, animates, or otherwise alternates between “(+)”and “(−)” symbols, “[+]” and “[−]” symbols, “+” and “−” symbols, or anyother suitable variation of plus and minus symbols.

For example only and not by way of limitation, parentheses around theplus and minus symbols may meet (or nearly meet) above and below theplus and minus symbols to resemble a capital “O” or oval. Analogously,square brackets around the plus and minus symbols may meet (or nearlymeet) above and below the plus and minus symbols to resemble a square.Furthermore, although variations of plus and minus symbols are primarilydescribed, any suitable stationary or animated icon 50 may be used torepresent the association of tool 30 with page 28, and the opportunityto provide a user reaction, without departing from the intended scope ofthe present invention. Preferably, icon 50 is the same or substantiallythe same across all pages 28 of website 26 and, more preferably, pages28 of other websites 26. This may contribute to the icon 50 becoming areadily identifiable and well-accepted standard throughout the communityof all users 16 of websites 26.

Typically, only a portion of page 28 will be viewable within browserwindow 52 at any one time as user 16 scrolls or otherwise navigatesthrough page 28. In one embodiment, icon 50 appears at or near aspecified location relative to the border 54 of browser window 52 in theviewable portion of page 28. Icon 50 may remain in substantially thesame location relative to border 54 as user 16 scrolls or otherwisenavigates through page 28. Alternatively, icon 50 might be located inthe masthead region 56 of the browser window and remain in mastheadregion 56 as the user 16 scrolls or otherwise navigates through page 28.Causing the icon 50 to remain in substantially the same location withinbrowser window 52 may help encourage user 16 to provide a subjectivereaction to page 28 using tool 30, and make it easier for user 16 to doso. This feature may further contribute to icon 50 becoming readilyidentifiable and well-accepted throughout the user community.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, in response to the user 16 rolling anassociated mouse pointer over icon 50, pointing to and clicking on icon50 using the mouse pointer, touching icon 50 using an associated touchscreen, or selecting icon 50 in another suitable manner, icon 50 maychange into or be replaced with a multi-level subjective rating scale 60that corresponds to general reaction measurement tool 32. In aparticular embodiment, rating scale 60 includes five levels ranging fromvery negative to very positive, each level having an associatedlanguage-independent or other appropriate symbol 62. For example andwithout limitation, a “−−” symbol 62 might correspond to a very negativerating, a “−” symbol 62 might correspond to a somewhat negative rating,a “+−” symbol 62 might correspond to a neutral rating, a “+” symbol 62may correspond to a somewhat positive rating, and a “++” symbol 62 maycorrespond to a very positive rating. Although a five level rating scale60 is described above in connection with a particular embodiment, anyappropriate multi-level or other subjective rating scale or scheme maybe used without departing from the intended scope of the presentinvention.

To record a general reaction to page 28, the user 16 clicks on, pointsto, or otherwise selects an appropriate symbol 62 reflective of thatreaction. In response, tool 32 (or tool 30) may store the user reactioninformation and, at the appropriate time, cause the reaction informationto be communicated to server 18 for storage in database 36. In aparticular embodiment, the user reaction information collected inresponse to user 16 providing a general reaction to the page 28 mayinclude, in any suitable combination and without limitation: (1) thetitle of page 28; (2) the URL for page 28; (3) the reaction useridentifier; (4) the subjective rating (for example only, “++,” “+,”“+−,” “−,” or “−−”); (5) the time and date page 28 was accessed; (6) thetime and date the subjective rating was received; (7) the web profileinformation for user 16; and (8) any other suitable information.According to the demographic user identifier, if one is available atserver 18, the demographic information for user 16 may be stored inassociation with the user reaction information in database 36, asdescribed more fully above.

Where appropriate, reactions to page 28 collected using tools 30 and 32may include responses to one or more explicit questions posed to theuser 16 concerning page 28, concerning one or more visual, audible, orother elements of page 28, or concerning one or more items with whichpage 28 is logically associated. Questions may be presented instead ofor in addition to rating scale 60. As an example, a page 28 of a vehiclemanufacturer's website 26 may include a picture of a particular make andmodel of vehicle. Questions posed to user 16 using tool 30 or 32, inresponse to the user 16 selecting icon 50, might include “How well doyou like this picture?” or “Do you like the shape of the tail fin?” forexample. The responses to the questions might be received using ratingscale 60, similar to collection of user reactions to page 28 describedabove, or might be received using a color or other suitable scale. Forexample, user 16 might select a green box, dot, or other visual elementto provide a “Yes” response, might select a white box, dot, or othervisual element to provide a “neutral” response, and might select a redbox, dot, or other visual element to provide a “No” response. Eachquestion may appear within a banner, bar, flag, or other visual elementin response to user 16 selecting icon 50, in response to user 16providing a reaction to page 28 using tool 30, 32, or 34, or otherwise.A particular color, shape, or other indicia associated with the elementmay always signify the same question, regardless of the page 28 on whichit appears. For example only, a green element might always signify thequestion, “Do you consider the price of this item fair?” A particularquestion may be posed in response to the user 16 providing a particularsubjective rating of the page 28 or a particular response to a previousquestion, the question presented being dependent upon the previousresponse. According to the present invention, one or more questions maybe associated with any one or more pages 28 of website 26 according tothe particular needs of owner 12, providing an important technicaladvantage.

Some or all of the stored information concerning page 28 may be providedto owner 12 in the form of one or more suitable reports to allow owner12 to assess the success of the particular page 28 in the eyes of theuser community. As described more fully above with reference to FIG. 1,icon 50 may cease to be viewable in browser window 52 after a generalreaction to page 28 has been received from user 16. Although in oneembodiment only tool 32 (not tool 34) may be viewable on page 28 inresponse to selection of tool 30, the present invention contemplatestool 34 being visible on page 28 instead of or in addition to tool 32.

In one embodiment, a question mark or other symbol 64 may be associatedwith rating scale 60 to allow user 16 to provide comments relating topage 28, one or more specified aspects of page 28, one or more itemsassociated with page 28, or any other appropriate comments. Symbol 64might further allow user 16 to receive help or other informationrelating to tool 30, tool 32, tool 34, or system 10. For example, asillustrated in FIG. 4, a window 65 may appear with rating scale 60 inresponse to user 16 selecting symbol 64. Alternatively, rating scale 60incorporating window 65 might appear in response to user 16 initiallyselecting icon 50, without requiring user 16 to first select symbol 64.Furthermore, as described more fully below with reference to FIG. 6, apop-up window containing rating scale 60 associated with tool 32, one ormore rating scales associated with tool 34, and a field to receive thecomments or help requests may be presented to the user 16 in response touser 16 selecting symbol 64, selecting icon 50, or otherwise.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, in response to the user 16 rolling anassociated mouse pointer over icon 50, pointing to and clicking on icon50 using the mouse pointer, touching icon 50 using an associated touchscreen, or selecting icon 50 in another appropriate manner, icon 50 maychange into or otherwise be replaced with set 70 of one or moremulti-level rating scales 72 corresponding to specific reactionmeasurement tool 34. Each of the rating scales 72 is used to measure thesubjective reaction of user 16 to a specified aspect of the particularpage 28, according to the same or a different multi-level rating scaleas for tool 32. For example only and not by way of limitation, tool 30may have separate rating scales 72 for measuring the subjective reactionof user 16 with respect to the content, design, usability, or othersuitable aspects of page 28, singly or in any appropriate combination.As described above, reactions to page 28 may include responses to one ormore explicit questions concerning page 28, concerning one or moreelements of page 28, concerning one or more items with which page 28 islogically associated, or concerning other subject matter possiblyunrelated to page 28.

In one embodiment, as for rating scale 60 of tool 32, each rating scale72 includes five levels ranging from very negative to very positive,each level having an associated language-independent or other suitablesymbol 74. For example only, a “−−” symbol 74 might correspond to a verynegative rating, a “−” symbol 74 might correspond to a somewhat negativerating, a “+−” symbol 74 might correspond to a neutral rating, a “+”symbol 74 may correspond to a somewhat positive rating, and a “++”symbol 74 may correspond to a very positive rating. Although five levelrating scales 72 are described, any suitable multi-level or othersubjective rating scale or scheme may be employed without departing fromthe intended scope of the present invention. Each rating scale 72 oftool 34 may be substantially the same or may be differentiated fromother rating scales 72 on one or more bases, for example, through theuse of color, shading, shape, or other characteristic. Preferably,rating scales 72 are substantially similar to or otherwise consistentwith rating scale 60 to maintain predictability, consistency, andacceptance within the user community.

To record a specific reaction to page 28, the user 16 clicks on, pointsto, or otherwise selects an appropriate symbol 74 reflective of thatreaction. In response, tool 34 (or tool 30) may store corresponding userreaction information and cause the user reaction information to becommunicated to server 18 for storage in database 36. In a particularembodiment, the reaction information collected in response to user 16providing a specific reaction to the page 28 may include, in anycombination and without limitation: (1) the title of page 28; (2) theURL for page 28; (3) the reaction user identifier; (4) the subjectiveratings (for example only, “++,” “+,” “+−,” “−,” or “−−”); (5) the timeand date the page 28 was accessed; (6) the time and date the subjectiveratings were received; (7) web profile information for user 16; and (8)any other appropriate information. According to the demographic useridentifier, if one is available at server 18, the demographicinformation for user 16 may be stored in association with the userreaction information in database 36, as described above. Tool 34 mayrequire multiple ratings to be provided, one for each rating scale 72,before such information is stored.

One or more rating scales 72 may appear substantially simultaneously, ina suitable sequence, or in any other relative manner. For example, asucceeding rating scale 72 might appear only in response to a user 16providing a specific user reaction at a preceding rating scale 72.Whether the succeeding rating scale 72 appears at all might depend onthe nature of the specific reaction provided at the preceding ratingscale 72. One or more child rating scales 72 may be nested with respectto a parent rating scale 72 on which child rating scales 72 dependwithin a hierarchy. One or more rating scales 72 may appear instead ofor in addition to rating scale 60 and may appear before, substantiallysimultaneous with, or after rating scale 60. For example, one or morerating scales 72 might appear only in response to user 16 providing ageneral reaction using rating scale 60, or the rating scale 60 mightappear only in response to user 16 providing a specific subjectivereaction using one or more rating scales 72. Other suitable alternativesmay be envisioned and the present invention is intended to encompass allsuch alternatives. In a particular embodiment, the rating scales 72 mayrotate in their respective positions each time they appear to reduce oreliminate any response bias that might otherwise manifest itself as aresult of the arrangement of rating scales 72.

Some or all of the stored information concerning page 28 may be providedto owner 12 in the form of one or more suitable reports to allow owner12 to assess the success of the particular page 28 in the eyes of theuser community. As described more fully above with reference to FIG. 1,icon 50 may cease to be viewable in browser window 52 after a specificreaction to page 28 has been received from user 16. Although in oneembodiment only tool 34 (not tool 32) is visible on the page 28 inresponse to selection of tool 30, the present invention contemplatestool 32 being visible on page 28 instead of or in addition to tool 34.

In one embodiment, as described above, a question mark or other symbol64 may be associated with the set 70 of rating scales 72 to allow theuser 16 to provide comments relating to the page 28, one or morespecified aspects of page 28, one or more items associated with page 28,or other appropriate comments. Symbol 64 might further allow user 16 toreceive help or other information relating to tool 30, tool 32, tool 34,or system 10. For example, a window similar to the window 65 of FIG. 4may appear with rating scales 72 in response to user 16 selecting symbol64. Alternatively, rating scales 72 incorporating such a window mightappear in response to user 16 initially selecting icon 50, withoutrequiring user 16 to first select symbol 64. Moreover, as illustrated inFIG. 6, a pop-up window 78 containing rating scale 60 associated withtool 32, one or more rating scales 72 associated with tool 34, and afield 79 to receive comments or help requests might be presented to user16 in response to user 16 selecting symbol 64, selecting icon 50, orotherwise. The present invention contemplates any technique forreceiving comments or other textual input from user 16 in associationwith a particular page 28.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example registration page 80 that may be sent touser 16 in response to user 16 providing a general or specific reactionto at least one page 28 of a website 26. Alternatively, user 16 mayselect a hypertext or other link within or associated with icon 50,rating scale 60, ratings scales 72, or window 78. The registration page80 includes one or more suitable input fields 82 for receivingdemographic information from user 16, which is then used to create auser profile for user 16 that is stored in database 40. In oneembodiment, demographic information collected from user 16 may include,for example only and not by way of limitation, in any suitablecombination: (1) a name; (2) an e-mail or other electronic address; (3)a residence, business, or other physical address; (4) a password; (5) agender; (6) an age or age range; (7) a job title, position, profession,industry, or other employment information; (8) an employment status (forexample, full-time, part-time, student, or retired); (9) number ofpersons in household; (10) a housing status (for example, homeowner orrenter); (11) a highest level of education; (12) personal or householdincome or income range; (13) information concerning one or moreactivities of user 16, such as computer usage patterns and preferences;and (14) any other appropriate demographic information.

In one embodiment, as described above with reference to FIG. 1, afterserver 18 receives demographic information sufficient to establish auser profile for user 16, server 14 assigns a demographic useridentifier to the user 16 and associates this demographic useridentifier with the corresponding user profile in database 36. Thedemographic user identifier is stored on the user's computer system (inthe form of a cookie, token, or other message) in response to the user16 providing requested demographic information. In response to user 16subsequently selecting tool 30 to provide a reaction, tool 30 recognizesuser 16 according to the stored demographic user identifier and mayconvey a suitable message to indicate this recognition. For example, thetool 30 may replace the icon 50 with a personalized message (such as“Thanks, [name]”) in response to user 16 providing a general or specificsubjective reaction to a particular page 28. This message may betransient, disappearing after a specified time period, or may remainviewable in browser window 52 while the user 16 remains on the page 28.The demographic user identifier preferably matches the reaction useridentifier for the user 16, which allows user reaction information anddemographic information to be readily associated with one another atserver 18. As described above, demographic information linked toreaction information may also facilitate the correlation of reactioninformation to other suitable metrics that are linked to demographicinformation.

As discussed above, website 26 may have a “topography” according topages 28 of website 26 and the relationships between the pages 28. Inone embodiment, system 10 provides owner 12 with the ability to accessand readily navigate through reports, which provide rating informationfor pages 28 of website 26, in a similar manner as user 16 accessespages 28 while navigating through website 26 according to the topographyof website 26. Furthermore, the reports allow owner 12 to readily focuson pages 28 that are of most interest. For example only, and not by wayof limitation, owner 12 may be particularly interested in accessingreaction information for any pages 28 that generated a significantpercentage of very negative subjective reactions, whether the reactionsare general or specific. As another example, owner 12 may beparticularly interested in reviewing reaction information for any pages28 that generated a significant percentage of very positive reactionsamong users 16 having specified demographic characteristics. Theinformation is communicated to owner 12 from server 14, upon request, inthe form of one or more suitable reports. Upon obtaining thisinformation, which was unavailable using previous techniques, owner 12may respond to improve website 26 and, quite possibly, the success of anassociated business or other enterprise.

FIGS. 8 through 9 illustrate example reports 100 for one or more pages28 of website 26. Reports 100 are intended to provide the owner 12 witha readily understandable view of the user reactions for a particularpage 28, a set of particular pages 28, or website 26 as a whole(considering all pages 28). As described above, reactions to page 28 mayinclude responses to one or more explicit questions about page 28, oneor more elements of page 28, one or more items with which page 28 islogically associated, or any other suitable subject. Reports 100 mayreflect only user reactions collected during a specified time period ormight reflect all user reactions collected since tool 30 wasincorporated to the particular page 28 or pages 28 that reports 100concern. As an example, reports 100 for successive time periods mightallow owner 12 to identify trends in the user reaction information andto respond appropriately. Reports 100 may reflect only the reactionscollected from users 16 having a specified user profile or one or morespecified demographic characteristics, or may reflect all user reactionscollected for the particular page 28 or pages 28 of interest. Thepresent invention contemplates one or more reports 100 to provide theowner 12 with any information collected using tools 30, 32, or 34, in aformat appropriate for owner 12.

For example, as shown in FIG. 8A for a website 26 as a whole, ratingstable 102 may include a timeframe 104 during which user reactions ofratings table 102 were collected. A website overview 106 might include,in any combination and without limitation: (1) the number of ratings forall pages 28 of website 26 (generally or as to one or more specificaspects); (2) the number of one or more specified types of ratings forall pages 28, such as the number of negative ratings (generally or as toone or more specific aspects); (3) the number of unrated pages 28 amongall pages 28 (where user 16 accessed page 28 incorporating tool 30 butdid not provide a rating); (4) the number of positively rated pages 28(generally or as to one or more specific aspects) among all the pages 28(which might include, for example, both positive ratings and verypositive ratings according to rating scale 60 or 72 described above);(5) the number of neutrally rated pages 28 (generally or as to one ormore specific aspects) among all of the pages 28; (6) the number ofnegatively rated pages 28 (generally or as to one or more specificaspects) among all pages 28 (which may include, for example, bothnegative ratings and very negative ratings according to rating scale 60or 72); (7) the number of ratings for the page 28 with the most ratingsor most ratings of a specified type, such as the most negative ratings(generally or as to one or more specific aspects); (8) the number ofcomments received in connection with all pages 28; (9) and any othersuitable rating information concerning website 26, considering all thepages 28. In the alternative, the ratings table 102 might providesimilar information concerning one or more particular pages 28.

In one embodiment, a site detail 108 may provide any of the site levelrating information described above in a more visually appealing andreadily interpretable manner. The site detail 108 may provide a“sliding” or other appropriate scale 110 indicating, for a selectedcategory of site level rating information, the percentages of ratingsthat are negative, neutral, and positive. For example, the site detail108 may include a sliding scale 110 for a “usability” aspect of pages28. Sliding scale 110 might include a first portion 112 a indicating thepercentage of negative ratings as to usability, a second portion 112 bindicating the percentage of neutral ratings as to usability, and athird portion 112 c indicating the percentage of positive ratings as tousability. More or fewer portions 112 that reflect finer or coarserrating variations may be provided according to particular needs.Portions 112 may be differentiated from one another using color,shading, or other suitable indicia. For example only, first portion 112a may be red, second portion 112 b may be black, and third portion 112 cmay be green. The present invention contemplates providing site levelrating information to owner 12 in any suitable format.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8A, report 100 reflects userreaction information for website 26 using a chart 124 having a ray,arrow, bar, or other line 126 for each page 28 of website 26. Thelengths 128 of lines 126 along scale 130 represent the total number ofratings received for the corresponding pages 28. Chart 124 may besubstantially circular at least in part, as illustrated, with lines 126that extend outward from its center 132, or may have any other suitableshape. As an example, as illustrated in FIG. 8B, chart 124 may include a“flat” version of chart 124 having a scale 130 in the direction of afirst axis 134 and lines 126 extending in the direction of the firstaxis 134 from a second axis 136 that is perpendicular to the first axis134. Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that othersuitable schemes for representing the ratings associated with aparticular page 28, including color for example, may be used withoutdeparting from the intended scope of the present invention. In oneembodiment, when a mouse pointer is rolled across the tip of line 126 orline 126 is otherwise selected, the title of, the URL for, a link to, areport concerning, or other information relating to corresponding page28 appears instead of, on top of, near, or otherwise in association withline 126. If a report for page 28 is generated, the report may replacereport 100, similar to the manner in which a newly accessed page 28 mayreplace a previously accessed page 28 within a user's browser window.

In one embodiment, referring again to FIG. 8A, chart 124 may include anumber of regions 138, as an example, negative region 138, neutralregion 138, and positive region 138. The position of line 126 relativeto regions 138 may reflect the average rating for associated page 28 (orother mathematical operation on ratings for associated page 28). Forexample only and without limitation, if the ratings on five level ratingscale 60 are assigned values of “1” through “5” with “1” being for avery negative rating, the average value for page 28 might be “2.5” andthe corresponding line 126 might be positioned near the border betweennegative and neutral regions 138. Regions 138 may each have the same orno color, each region 138 may have a different color, or the colors ofregions 138 may transition smoothly across regions 138. Instead of or inaddition to colored regions 138, lines 126 may be colored according totheir positions relative to regions 138. For example only and withoutlimitation, line 26 reflecting an average rating of “1.4” might besubstantially red, a line 26 reflecting an average rating of “3.3” mightbe substantially black, and line 26 reflecting an average rating of“4.2” might be substantially green. Color may be used in any suitablemanner to convey user reaction information for one or more pages 28 ofwebsite 26.

According to the above, if multiple pages 28 have the same averagerating, their lines 126 will overlap on chart 124. To avoid confusion insuch cases, shorter lines 126 in such a group (having fewer ratings) mayterminate in a white circle rather than a colored circle or may bedifferentiated in any other suitable manner from the longest line 126 inthe group (having the most ratings) and from each other. Such adifferentiator may also be desirable where lines 126 do not have thesame average rating, and thus do not precisely overlap, but have ratingssimilar enough to make lines 126 difficult to distinguish from oneanother. In one embodiment, pages 28 having a substantially neutralaverage rating but bimodal distributions (according to any suitableformula) may be represented using lines 126 that terminate in a redcircle rather than a black circle or are differentiated in anothersuitable manner from any other lines 126 that reflect substantiallyneutral average ratings. For any subjective rating described above, thepresent invention contemplates the rating being according to ratingscale 60, one or more rating scales 72, or any other appropriate ratingscale. Ratings for one scale, scale 60 for example, may be distinguishedfrom ratings for another scale, scale 72 for example, using any suitablevisual indicator in the same or a different chart 124, according toparticular needs.

As discussed, instead of or in addition to reflecting user reactioninformation for one or more particular pages 28 of website 26, chart 124may reflect user reaction information for website 26 as a whole using asingle line 126 that takes into account all pages 28 of website 26. Forexample, and not by way of limitation, chart 124 may include coloredregions 138 as described above and a single line 126 having a lengthreflecting the number of ratings for all the pages 28 of website 26,according to scale 130, and having a position reflecting the averagevalue of ratings for all pages 28 of website 26. Such a line 126 forwebsite 26 as a whole may be superimposed on chart 124 having lines 126for particular pages 28 of website 26, may be within a separate windowof chart 124, or may have any other suitable spatial relationship tochart 124 having lines 126 for particular pages 28 of website 26.Furthermore, such lines 126 may be used to represent the average ratingvalue for multiple websites 26 on the same chart 100, for example, someor all websites 26 associated with a particular owner 12. Websites 26for which chart 100 reflects average rating values may be selectedaccording to their owners 12, the industries with which the websites 26are associated, or other suitable selection criteria.

Benchmarks may be established and reflected in report 100, along withthe average rating values for one or more websites 26, for purposes ofcomparison. For example, as discussed above, report 100 may reflect anoverall rating for website 26 according to the average (or othermathematical operation) of ratings for pages 28 of website 26. Overallratings for other websites 26 that are associated with the same industryor otherwise comparable with the particular website 26 may be generatedin an analogous manner. Comparing the overall rating for the particularwebsite 26 with the overall ratings of other websites 26, singly or as agroup, may provide valuable information to owner 12. Furthermore,overall ratings for multiple websites 26 may be evaluated in some mannerto generate a website index value for each website 26 relative to othercomparable websites 26. In one embodiment, such a website index might beupdated once a month or otherwise to allow owner 12 to readily track theoverall performance of website 26 relative to its peers. An overallrating assigned to website 26 in the manner described above, accordingto subjective ratings for pages 28 of the website 26, may provide owner12 with more meaningful information about the effectiveness of website26 than collecting subjective ratings that each concern only website 26as a whole.

In one embodiment, report 100 may also include a chart 140, integral toor separate from chart 124, providing a percentage or other relativeportion of pages 28 of website 26 that have been rated. For example, andwithout limitation, if chart 124 is substantially circular asillustrated in FIG. 8A, chart 140 may be located in a sector of chart124 to allow the owner 12 to appreciate the information in charts 124and 138 substantially simultaneously. The percentage of other relativeportion of rated pages 28 may be indicated using a scale 142 oraccording to the amount 144 of the chart 140 that is colored, filled, orotherwise indicated as corresponding to that percentage or otherrelative portion. Providing site level rating information to the owner12 in an integrated and readily understandable manner using report 100is an important technical advantage of the present invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example report 150 for a particular page 28 ofwebsite 26. Similar to report 100 for website 26 as a whole, report 100for page 28 may include ratings table 152 having a timeframe 154 duringwhich user reactions of ratings table 152 were collected. A pageoverview 156 may include, in any suitable combination and withoutlimitation: (1) the number of ratings for page 28 (generally or as toone or more specific aspects); (2) the number of one or more specifiedtypes of ratings for page 28, such as the number of negative ratings(generally or as to one or more specific aspects); (3) the number ofpositive ratings for page 28 (generally or as to one or more specificaspects), which may include both positive ratings and very positiveratings according to rating scale 60 or 72; (4) the number of neutralratings for the page 28 (generally or as to one or more specificaspects); (5) the number of negative ratings for page 28 (generally oras to one or more specific aspects), which may include both negativeratings and very negative ratings according to rating scale 60 or 72;(6) the number of comments received in connection with page 28; (7) andany other suitable rating information concerning page 28.

In one embodiment, page detail 158 may provide any of the page levelrating information described above in a more visually appealing andreadily interpretable manner. The page detail 158 may provide a“sliding” or other appropriate scale 160 indicating, for a selectedcategory of page level rating information, the percentages of ratingsthat are negative, neutral, and positive. For example, the page detail158 may include a sliding scale 160 for the “usability” aspect of page28. Sliding scale 160 may include a first portion 162 a indicating thepercentage of negative ratings as to usability, a second portion 162 bindicating the percentage of neutral ratings as to usability, and athird portion 162 c indicating the percentage of positive ratings as tousability. More or fewer portions 162 that reflect finer or coarserrating variations may be provided according to particular needs.Portions 162 may be differentiated from one another using color,shading, or other suitable indicia. For example only, first portion 162a may be red, second portion 162 b may be black, and third portion 162 cmay be green. The present invention contemplates providing page levelrating information to the owner 12 in any appropriate format.

In one embodiment, report 150 reflects user reaction information forpage 28 using a chart 164 having a scale 166 in the direction of a firstaxis 168 and a set of bars, boxes, banners, or other lines 170 extendingin the direction of first axis 168 from a second axis 172 that isperpendicular to the first axis 168. The position of a line 170 alongsecond axis 172 reflects the type of rating line 170 represents. Thelength of line 170 according to scale 166 reflects the number of ratingsof that type for page 28. The present invention contemplates chart 164being “flat” as shown, being substantially circular similar to chart 124shown in FIG. 8A, or having any other suitable configuration. In oneembodiment, owner 12 may move from report 100 to any associated report150 or to another report 100 for another website 26, may move from anyreport 150 to associated report 100, or may move in any otherappropriate manner between reports 100 and 150 in assessing the userreaction information for one or more websites 26 and their pages 28.

A report 150 for a particular page 28 may provide hypertext or othersuitable links to reports 150 for other pages 28 that may be linked tothe particular page 28 according to the unique topography of website 26.For example, if a first page 28 allows users 16 to access either asecond page 28, a third page 28, or a fourth page 28, report 150 for thefirst page 28 might similarly allow owner 12 to access at least thereports 150 for the second page 28, for the third page 28, and for thefourth page 28. Report 150 for the first page 28 might further allowowner 12 to access the parent page 28 of the first page 28; that is, thepage 28 at an adjacent higher level within a hierarchical topography ofwebsite 26 from which user 16 might navigate to the first page 28. Inone embodiment, reporting module 46 generates reports 150 “on the fly”in response to specific requests received from the owner 12 usingnetwork 20. For example, reporting module 46 might access one or moredatabases 36, 40, and 44 to generate report 150 in response to owner 12clicking on, pointing to, or otherwise selecting a link to a second page28 while viewing report 150 for a first page 28. Reporting module 46,through reports 150, allows owner 12 to navigate through user reactioninformation pertaining to the pages 28 of website 26 in much the samemanner that users 16 navigate through the pages 28 of website 26 whenaccessing website 26 for their needs, according to the topography ofwebsite 26, providing an important technical advantage.

Instead of or in addition to reports 100 and 150, reports may beprovided to owner 12 according to one or more points of view that relateto rating distribution, rating values, rating submission, ratingdemographics, or other suitable criteria for one or more pages 28. Forexample, and not by way of limitation, such reports may include: (1) areport of the distribution of ratings (number of ratings for each ratingvalue) for a page 28 overall, for page 28 for a specified demographicprofile (such as all women), or for page 28 for a target demographicprofile of owner 12 (such as all women over 65 years old that live inChicago and own their residence); (2) a report ranking, for one or moredemographics (such as age), the top one or more categories (such as18-25 year old) for those demographics in terms of percentage of ratingsprovided, percentage of ratings provided of a specified type, or anyother suitable rating information; (3) a report of the percentageoccurrence of each rating value (or one or more selected rating values)for one or more demographics (such as age) or one or more demographiccategories (such as 18-25 year old); (4) a report of the number or thepercentage of ratings (or ratings of one or more specified types) versusthe submission time and date (or time and date range); (5) a report ofthe distribution of ratings sorted according to the time spent on page28 before rating submission; (6) a report of the top one or more IPaddresses for users 16 submitting ratings for a time and date (or timeand date range); and (7) any other suitable report reflecting userreaction information, demographic information, and any other collectedinformation, according to particular needs. Although such point of viewreports are described as being separate from reports 100 and 150,reports 100 and 150 may convey similar information. In one embodiment,for example, a particular point of view report might resemble report 150illustrated in FIG. 9.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example method of incorporating tool 30 into oneor more particular pages 28 of website 26. The method begins at step200, where owner 12 communicates a download or other suitable request toserver 18 (shown in FIGS. 10 through 12 as “system server 18” todistinguish it from server 14, shown in FIGS. 10 through 12 as “websiteserver 14”). At step 202, server 18 prompts owner 12 to provideidentification, billing, and any other suitable registration and setupinformation. At step 204, owner 12 communicates the requestedinformation to the server 18 (whether or not the server 18 is local toor distributed from owner 12). Server 18 may also notify owner 12 thatwebsite 26 may be crawled to identify and gather data pertaining topages 28, may provide owner 12 with a license agreement and otherinformation concerning the services to be provided to owner 12, or maycommunicate any other suitable information with owner 12. At step 206,server 18 may assign an owner identifier and password to owner 12 toallow the owner 12 to access reports 100. Server 18 stores theregistration and setup information for owner 12 in an appropriatestorage location (not explicitly shown) at step 208 to completeregistration and setup of owner 12.

At step 210, to incorporate tool 30 into one or more pages 28 of website26, owner 12 downloads or otherwise communicates pages 28 (or copies ofpages 28) from server 14 to the owner's computer system, preferablyusing a suitable wizard or other software component designed tofacilitate the incorporation process. At step 212, owner 12 specifies,for each page 28, the type (for example, spinning between “(+)” and“(−)”), color, or any other appropriate characteristic of the desiredicon 50 for page 28. For example and without limitation, the owner 12may click on desired icon 50, which might be one of multiple standardicons 50, and modify one or more characteristics of icon 50 usingsuitable pull down menus. As described above, the characteristics of theicon might include one or more explicit questions concerning page 28,concerning one or more visual, audible, or other elements of page 28, orconcerning one or more items with which page 28 is logically associated.Desired icons 50 are incorporated into local versions of pages 28 atstep 214, singly or as a group. For example and not by way oflimitation, owner 12 may click on, drag and drop, or otherwiseincorporate desired icons 50 into the local version of pages 28, singlyor as a group. Alternatively, the incorporation might occurautomatically in response to owner 12 simply specifying characteristicsof icon 50.

Owner 12, through the wizard or in any other suitable manner, may createa separate directory containing a JAVASCRIPT or other script embodyingtool 30 at step 216 and, at step 218, may paste or otherwise incorporatea suitable call to the script into the software code of the localversion of page 28. After the tool 30 is incorporated into the localversions of pages 28, owner 12 may use the wizard to upload or otherwisecommunicate modified pages 28 (now incorporating tool 30) to server 14at step 220, singly or as a group, to replace corresponding pages 28(not incorporating tool 30) in website 26. While an particular exampleembodiment is described in detail, tool 30 may be incorporated in one ormore pages 28 of a website 26 in any suitable manner without departingfrom the intended scope of the present invention. For example, as analternative, server 18 may communicate tool 30 and associated softwarecomponents directly to server 14 for automatic incorporation into pages28, in response to a download request from owner 12. After the pages 28incorporating tool 30 are then uploaded to server 14, the method ends.Tool 30 is communicated with page 28 to user 16 in response to user 16accessing page 28 during a browser session.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example method of measuring reactions of user 16to one or more particular pages 28 of website 26. The method begins atstep 300, where user 16 establishes a connection to server 14 to accessa particular page 28 of website 26 incorporating tool 30. At step 302,server 14 communicates page 28, with incorporated tool 30, to user 16and, at step 304, a separate directory containing the script associatedwith tool 30 is installed in some appropriate manner on the user'scomputer system. If page 28 is the first page 28 incorporating tool 30that the user 16 has accessed during the browser session at step 306,tool 30 attempts to determine at step 308 the IP or other electronicaddress for the user's computer system and, when technically feasible,the hostname for the user's computer system. At step 310, the tool 30attempts to store a cookie, token, or other appropriate message on theuser's computer, system, through the user's web browser or otherwise,containing the session identifier for the browser session. At step 312,tool 30 may also store the time and date at which user 16 accessed thepage 28. At step 306, if page 28 is not the first page 28 incorporatingtool 30 that user 16 has accessed during the browser session, the methodmay proceed directly to step 312. The present invention contemplatessteps 304 through 312 occurring in any appropriate order, according toparticular needs.

At step 314, user 16 rolls an associated mouse pointer over icon 50,points to and clicks on icon 50 using the mouse pointer, touches icon 50using an associated touch screen, or otherwise selects tool 30 toprovide one or more subjective reactions to the particular page 28. Asdescribed more fully above, a multi-level subjective rating scale 60associated with tool 32 may request user 16 to provide a generalreaction to page 28, one or more multi-level subjective rating scales 72associated with tool 34 may request the user 16 to provide one or morespecific reactions to the page 28, rating scale 60 and one or morerating scales 72 may appear in combination to request a combination ofgeneral and specific reactions to the page 28, or one or more userreactions to the particular page 28 may be requested in any othersuitable manner. In one embodiment, as described above, a reaction topage 28 may include one or more responses to explicit questions posed touser 16 concerning page 28, concerning one or more elements of page 28,or concerning one or more items with which page 28 is logicallyassociated. Such questions may be presented to user 16 instead of or inaddition to a rating scale 60 or 72. At step 316, user 16 provides oneor more reactions using a suitable combination of tools 30, 32, and 34.

If tool 30 determines at step 318 that user 16 has not previouslyprovided demographic information, based on the absence on the user'scomputer system of a cookie, token, or other message including ademographic user identifier, the tool 30 may prompt user 16 to providesufficient demographic information using registration page 80 at step320. If user 16 provides requested demographic information at step 322,tool 30 attempts to store a cookie, token, or other suitable messageincluding a demographic user identifier on the user's computer system atstep 324. Tool 30 may communicate the demographic information anddemographic user identifier to server 18 at step 326 for storage indatabase 40. Alternatively, the tool 30 may wait to communicate thedemographic information together with user reaction informationdescribed below. At step 328, tool 30 attempts to store a cookie, token,or other suitable message including a reaction user identifier on theuser's computer system, preferably the same as the demographic useridentifier described above. If tool 30 determines at step 318 that user16 previously provided demographic information (in the same or in aprevious browser session), based on there being a cookie, token, orother suitable message including a demographic user identifier stored onthe user's computer system, the method may proceed directly to step 328.Step 328 may occur before, during, or after steps 318 through 326, asappropriate.

At step 330, tool 30 temporarily stores reaction information on thecomputer system of user 16 and instructs the computer system tocommunicate the reaction information to server 18. In one embodiment,the reaction information for page 28 may include, in any suitablecombination and without limitation, the title, the URL, the start timeand date, the reaction time and date, the user reaction, the reactionuser identifier, and web profile information. Tool 30 may continue tostore the reaction user identifier for determining, in response to theuser 16 subsequently accessing the particular page 28, that user 16 hasalready accessed the particular page 28. Tool 30 communicates reactioninformation, using the computer system of user 16, to server 18 at step332. At step 334, tool 30 may cause an icon 50 to become unviewable onthe particular page 28 for the remainder of the browser session, untiluser 16 leaves the page 28 (being viewable again if user 16 returns tothe page 28 during the browser session), or for any other suitableperiod.

At step 336, server 18 manipulates and stores reaction informationreceived from tool 30. For example, server 18 may compute the time spenton the page 28 before user 16 provided the reaction. Server 18 storesany such computed reaction information, together with suitable reactioninformation received from tool 30, in database 36. If the receivedreaction information included a reaction user identifier, server 18 mayattempt to match the reaction user identifier with a demographic useridentifier stored in database 40, to allow the server 18 to associatethe demographic information for user 16 with the reaction information indatabase 36. If user 16 has closed the web browser to terminate thebrowser session at step 338, the cookies, tokens, or other messagesstored on the user's computer system containing the session identifierand reaction user identifier may expire at step 340, and the methodends. If user 16 instead accesses another page 28 that incorporates tool30 during the browser session, the method returns to step 300.

FIG. 12 illustrates an example method of reporting to owner 12 userreactions to one or more particular web pages 28 of a website 26. Themethod begins at step 400, where collection module 42 may perform acrawl or otherwise identify the pages 28 of website 26 incorporatingtool 30. At step 402, collection module 42 may parse pages 28 toidentify their titles, URLs, and any other appropriate information. Atstep 404, the collection module 42 may generate a map or other reportconcerning the topography of website 26 and, at step 406, store the mapin the database 44. At step 408, owner 12 communicates a report requestto server 18 and, at step 410, the reporting module 46 prompts owner 12to specify one or more criteria for use in generating the requestedreport 100. Owner 12 provides the requested report criteria at step 412.

The report criteria may include, for example and not by way oflimitation: (1) whether a ratings table 102 or 152 is to be displayed;(2) the desired information that is to appear in the ratings table 102or 152; (3) whether a chart 124 or 164 is to be displayed, instead of orin addition to ratings table 102 or 152, respectively; (4) the type ofchart 124 or 164 to be displayed (for example, chart 124 of FIG. 8A orchart 124 of FIG. 8B); (5) the desired information to appear in chart124 or 164; (6) how the desired information is to be displayed in chart124 or 164 (for example, specifying the use of color for regions 138 andlines 126); (7) whether chart 140 is to be displayed, instead of or inaddition to ratings table 102 or chart 124; (8) a point of view for thereport 100 or 150 (for example, specifying one or more demographiccharacteristics to which the report 100 or 150 is to be limited, one ormore time periods to which report 100 or 150 is to be limited, or anyother suitable points of view); and (9) any other suitable reportcriteria.

At step 414, reporting module 24 accesses the map for website 26 storedin database 44, reaction information for pages 28 stored in database 36,and possibly demographic information for users 16 stored in database 40.As described above, the demographic information relating to particularreaction information may be stored in association with the reactioninformation, in database 36 for example, when reaction information isreceived and processed. As a result, the reporting module 46 may notneed to access database 40 to generate report 100 or 150. At step 416,reporting module 46 then generates the requested report 100 or 150,concerning one or more particular pages 28 of website 26, according tothe specified report criteria. In one embodiment, reporting module 46generates report 100 or 150 on the fly in response to the specificreport request from owner 12, without having previously stored report100 or 150. At step 418, the reporting module 46 then communicates therequested report 100 or 150 to owner 12.

If the owner 12 wishes to access another report 100 or 150 at step 420,the method returns to step 412, where the owner 12 provides new reportcriteria. In a particular embodiment, report 100 or 150 may providehypertext or other appropriate links that, when selected, causereporting module 46 to generate a new report 100 or 150 according to theselected link. The present invention contemplates owner 12 specifyingnew report criteria through selection of such a link, in the manner thatowner 12 specified the original report criteria, or in any otherappropriate manner. Preferably, owner 12 may navigate through at leastreports 150 in substantially the same manner that users 16 mightnavigate through various pages 28 of website 26, according to thetopography of website 26. As described above, this feature provides animportant technical advantage of the present invention. Steps 412through 420 may be repeated as many times as necessary or desirable tosatisfy the needs of the owner 12. If the owner 12 does not wish toaccess another report 100 or 150 at step 420, the method ends.

Although the present invention has been described with severalembodiments, a plethora of changes, substitutions, variations,alterations, and modifications may be suggested to one skilled in theart, and it is intended that the invention encompass all such changes,substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications as fall withinthe spirit and scope of the appended claims.

1. A system for collecting a user response to an explicit questionspecifically concerning a particular web page of a website, comprising:an icon viewable on the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns, the icon presenting the explicit questionspecifically concerning the particular web page to each user thataccesses the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns while the user is viewing the particular web page the explicitquestion specifically concerns and without requiring the user to accessany web page other than the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns; and software associated with the icon viewable onthe particular web page the explicit question specifically concerns, thesoftware receiving a response to the explicit question specificallyconcerning the particular web page from the user while the user isviewing the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns for reporting to a website owner associated with the particularweb page the explicit question specifically concerns without requiringthe user to access any web page other than the particular web page theexplicit question specifically concerns.
 2. The system of claim 1,wherein the software associated with the icon is incorporated intosoftware of the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns and the user need not download software separate from theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concerns toprovide the response to the explicit question specifically concerningthe particular web page.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the softwareassociated with the icon comprises a call to a directory containing ascript, the script receiving the response to the explicit questionspecifically concerning the particular web page from the user.
 4. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the software associated with the icon isincorporated into a web browser of the user.
 5. The system of claim 1,wherein the icon comprises a visual element containing the question, thevisual element comprising a box, a banner, or a bar.
 6. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the explicit question is directed to one or morespecified elements of the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns, each specified element comprising a visibleelement or an audible element.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein theexplicit question is directed to content, design, or usability of theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concerns.
 8. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the explicit question is directed to one ormore specified items with which the particular web page the explicitquestion specifically concerns is associated.
 9. The system of claim 1,wherein the icon is generated in response to a user selecting apreceding icon viewable on the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns, the preceding viewable icon comprising a plussign, a minus sign, or alternating plus and minus signs.
 10. The systemof claim 9, wherein the preceding icon is viewable on the particular webpage the explicit question specifically concerns independent of userinput subsequent to the user accessing the particular web page theexplicit question specifically concerns.
 11. The system of claim 1,wherein the software associated with the icon receives demographicinformation from the user, in association with the response to theexplicit question specifically concerning the particular web page, forreporting to the website owner in association with the response to theexplicit question specifically concerning the particular web page. 12.The system of claim 1, wherein the software associated with the icon isincorporated into software of the particular web page the explicitquestion specifically concerns in response to a request from the websiteowner, the request specifying the explicit question to be presented. 13.The system of claim 1, further comprising a computer system displayingthe particular web page the explicit question specifically concerns tothe user.
 14. A method of collecting a user response to an explicitquestion specifically concerning a particular web page of a website,comprising: using an icon viewable on the particular web page theexplicit question specifically concerns to present the explicit questionspecifically concerning the particular web page to each user thataccesses the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns while the user is viewing the particular web page the explicitquestion specifically concerns and without requiring the user to accessany web page other than the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns; and using software associated with the iconviewable on the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns to receive a response to the explicit question specificallyconcerning the particular web page from the user while the user isviewing the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns for reporting to a website owner associated with the particularweb page the explicit question specifically concerns without requiringthe user to access any web page other than the particular web page theexplicit question specifically concerns.
 15. The method of claim 14,wherein the software associated with the icon is incorporated intosoftware of the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns and the user need not download software separate from theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concerns toprovide the response to the explicit question specifically concerningthe particular web page.
 16. The method of claim 14, wherein thesoftware associated with the icon comprises a call to a directorycontaining a script, the script receiving the response to the explicitquestion specifically concerning the particular web page from the user.17. The method of claim 14, wherein the software associated with theicon is incorporated into a web browser of the user.
 18. The method ofclaim 14, wherein the icon comprises a visual element containing thequestion, the visual element comprising a box, a banner, or a bar. 19.The method of claim 14, wherein the explicit question is directed to oneor more specified elements of the particular web page the explicitquestion specifically concerns, each specified element comprising avisible element or an audible element.
 20. The method of claim 14,wherein the explicit question is directed to content, design, orusability of the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns.
 21. The method of claim 14, wherein the explicit question isdirected to one or more specified items with which the particular webpage the explicit question specifically concerns is associated.
 22. Themethod of claim 14, further comprising generating the icon in responseto a user selecting a preceding icon viewable on the particular web pagethe explicit question specifically concerns, the preceding viewable iconcomprising a plus sign, a minus sign, or alternating plus and minussigns.
 23. The method of claim 22, wherein the preceding icon isviewable on the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns independent of user input subsequent to the user accessing theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concerns.
 24. Themethod of claim 14, further comprising using software associated withthe icon to receive demographic information from the user, inassociation with the response to the explicit question specificallyconcerning the particular web page, for reporting to the website ownerin association with the response to the explicit question specificallyconcerning the particular web page.
 25. The method of claim 14, whereinthe software associated with the icon is incorporated into software ofthe particular web page the explicit question specifically concerns inresponse to a request from the website owner, the request specifying theexplicit question to be presented.
 26. Software for collecting a userresponse to an explicit question specifically concerning a particularweb page of a web site, the software embodied in one or morecomputer-readable media and when executed: providing an icon viewable onthe particular web page the explicit question specifically concerns topresent the explicit question specifically concerning the particular webpage to each user that accesses the particular web page the explicitquestion specifically concerns while the user is viewing the particularweb page the explicit question specifically concerns and withoutrequiring the user to access any web page other than the particular webpage the explicit question specifically concerns; and receiving aresponse to the explicit question specifically concerning the particularweb page from the user while the user is viewing the particular web pagethe explicit question specifically concerns for reporting to a websiteowner associated with the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns without requiring the user to access any web pageother than the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns.
 27. The software of claim 26, wherein the software isincorporated into software of the particular web page the explicitquestion specifically concerns and the user need not download softwareseparate from the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns to provide the response to the explicit question specificallyconcerning the particular web page.
 28. The software of claim 26,wherein the software comprises a call to a directory containing ascript, the script operable to receive the response to the explicitquestion specifically concerning the particular web page from the user.29. The software of claim 26, wherein the software is incorporated intoa web browser of the user.
 30. The software of claim 26, wherein theicon comprises a visual element containing the question, the visualelement comprising a box, a banner, or a bar.
 31. The software of 26,wherein the explicit question is directed to one or more specifiedelements of the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns, each specified element comprising a visible element or anaudible element.
 32. The software of claim 26, wherein the explicitquestion is directed to content, design, or usability of the particularweb page the explicit question specifically concerns.
 33. The softwareof claim 26, wherein the explicit question is directed to one or morespecified items with which the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns is associated.
 34. The software of claim 26,further providing the icon in response to a user selecting a precedingicon viewable on the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns, the preceding viewable icon comprising a plussign, a minus sign, or alternating plus and minus signs.
 35. Thesoftware of claim 34, wherein the preceding icon is viewable on theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concernsindependent of user input subsequent to the user accessing theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concerns.
 36. Thesoftware of claim 26, further receiving demographic information from theuser, in association with the response to the explicit questionspecifically concerning the particular web page, for reporting to thewebsite owner in association with the response to the explicit questionspecifically concerning the particular web page.
 37. The software ofclaim 26, wherein the software is incorporated into software of theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concerns inresponse to a request from the website owner, the request specifying theexplicit question to be presented.
 38. A system for collecting a userresponse to an explicit question specifically concerning a particularweb page of a website, comprising: a first icon viewable on theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concernsindependent of user input subsequent to the user accessing theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concerns; asecond icon viewable on the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns generated in response to a user selecting thefirst icon viewable on the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns, the second icon viewable on the particular webpage the explicit question specifically concerns presenting the explicitquestion specifically concerning the particular web page to each userthat accesses the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns while the user is viewing the particular web page the explicitquestion specifically concerns and without requiring the user to accessany web page other than the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns; and software associated with the second iconviewable on the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns, the software receiving a response to the explicit questionspecifically concerning the particular web page from the user while theuser is viewing the particular web page the explicit questionspecifically concerns for reporting to a website owner associated withthe particular web page the explicit question specifically concernswithout requiring the user to access any web page other than theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concerns, thesoftware associated with the second icon being incorporated intosoftware of the particular web page the explicit question specificallyconcerns such that the user need not download software separate from theparticular web page the explicit question specifically concerns toprovide the response to the explicit question specifically concerningthe particular web page.